Discussion

Acai, Papaya Salad, Chicken Sandwich

Acai Vida - acai smoothieSouth BroadwayAfter getting back from Brazil I was happy to discover this place above the QFC on Broadway (near Seattle U). Trust me, it's there. It's hidden behind the T-Mobile store near the elevator. Anyway, the frozen acai smoothies are exactly like the stuff they were selling on the beach in Ipanema, which was a pleasant surprise. Who says there's no X in Seattle? It's got that rich, antioxidanty flavor that makes up for the cup of sugar that's probably in it, you can get the granola topping on it, and she will even slice up some fruit for you. Way good, anyway. They also have Guarana syrup there, of which I bought a liter so I can mix my own. I don't know how business is doing with such a rough location, so get it while you can and while the weather is hot. It's a perfect "instead of lunch" option for when you're about to go to the beach and don't want to stuff your gut with the following:

Zizo Market - garlic chicken sandwichDowntown BellevueI went to Main Street in Bellevue looking for the Persian Grocery, but all I could find was Zizo Market, so I assumed it was just the same place with a different name (not the case... but anyway). The Zizo girl made for me this intense, succulent, perfect garlic chicken sandwich. It was really tender chicken pieces with some kind of sauce, wrapped in a couple flatbreads and grilled. When she handed it to me I blacked out. When I came to the sandwich was gone and I was smiling. Don't know what happened. They also have a little salad bar with 6 or 7 side dishes (tabouleh, hummus, babaganouj, med salad, etc) and the "market" part of it sells all sorts of pan-Middle Eastern packaged foods that I don't know anything about because I haven't been there yet. I would suggest getting one of these babies to go and eating it in the park or something. Somewhere you can lay down.

Rom Mai Thai - green papaya saladNorth BroadwayThe service is a little suffocating, like the waiter asking us how the meal is going three times during the same course, but it's worth going here for the best papaya salad we've had in Seattle. Last night we finally had to emphasize that "really, no really, we really do actually want it spicy, 4 stars, it's ok, please" because in the past they've taken us for some kind of wimps, I guess. So they made it 4 stars and our mouths burned good for the next 20 minutes and it was just like the ones I remember from Thailand that tore my intestines apart. The staff was looking on waiting for us to send it back, but it was exactly what we were looking for. Endorphin rush.The main dishes we've had here aren't great - I had peanut sauce that was pretty awful and my girlf had ginger tofu, which was ok as well (Jamjuree is the better Capitol Hill choice for both of these, and I prefer Thai Tom's peanut sauce), but they do have mango sticky rice, and who am I to argue with that? Maybe the best option is takeout.

You'd miss it if you weren't looking for it.It's not much to look at on the outside, and it takes forever to get a sandwich and the sandwich can sometimes it can come out greasy, but when it's good, it's great.